JZ Says: WWE 205 Live Episode 120 (Drew Gulak, Tony Nese)

We open with a welcome from Drew Gulak, who hypes up the Final Four tonight, specifically his match against Tony Nese. Gulak reminds us that he defeated Nese in last year’s tournament, and that he’s owned Tony Nese thus far. Excellent promo that really got me hyped.

Elsewhere, Tony Nese has a retort. Nese acknowledges that he must be perfect in order to beat someone of Gulak’s caliber. He says he’s different this year, and Gulak will find that out.

Back in a locker room, Oney Lorcan gets promo time, and says he has nothing personal against Humberto Carrillo or Cedric Alexander, but he is here to get the job done.

In a purple-lit stairway, Cedric Alexander puts over Oney Lorcan’s toughness, but says he won’t stand in his way of going back to WrestleMania to challenge for the Cruiserweight Championship.

Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness, and Aiden English are on commentary.

Before we can get underway, WWE Cruiserweight Champion Buddy Murphy has sent in a promo congratulating the semifinalists on getting this far. Murphy puts them all over but says he’s still better than any of them and you can’t stop the unstoppable.

~MATCH #1~Cedric Alexander defeats Oney Lorcan in a semifinal tournament match. This is a first-time ever match, so they take their time in the opening minutes, feeling each other out with holds and strikes. Alexander is known for his high-flying skills, but he’s very adept on the m at as well. When Lorcan gains control, he focuses on the midsection, and I love how the commentators explain what he’s doing and why it’s working. Alexander makes brief comebacks, but Lorcan is persistent in his attacks. Lorcan hits the Half n Half Suplex, and Alexander kicks out at two! The momentum swings back and forth, and the crowd is mostly non-plussed. Lorcan gets Alexander in position for a Super Half n Half, but it only gets two! He’s not sure what to do now, and Alexander capitalizes, hitting a sudden Lumbar Check to get the pin. Fantastic outing between two very different performers that meshed better than I expected them to. The crowd wasn’t super into it, but that’s an ongoing problem with this show.
Rating: ***¾

The commentators recap last week’s Mike Kanellis beating to Colby Corino. That segues to backstage, where the Kanellis duo is arguing with General Manager Drake Maverick about Maverick’s perceived lack of respect. Mike says he deserves better. Maverick agrees and says Mike will face one of the top cruiserweights in the world next week. He suggests Mike take the opportunity seriously, because there may not be another one because there’s no room for losers on 205 Live.

Elsewhere, Ariya Daivari is telling us how mad he is about not being in the tournament. Daivari promises to show us what a year of frustration looks like.

~MATCH #2~Tony Nese defeats Drew Gulak in a semifinal tournament match. They start with chain wrestling, aggressively going after each other. Gulak controls much of the match, focusing on Nese’s neck to he can use the Gu-Lock to maximum effectiveness. He goes for frequent pins as well, which wears Nese out even more. Nese fights back and knows he’s worn down, so he goes for big moves and strikes to try to keep Gulak down for three. Down the stretch they both heat things up, and Gulak fights hard to use his Gu-Lock submission, but Nese has it well scouted. Nese hits the release German Suplex into the bottom buckle, but when he tries the running Nese, Gulak avoids it and hits a big clothesline for two. Gulak puts on the Gu-Lock, and Nese reaches the ropes, but he uses the ropes to push himself over into a cover, and that’s enough to get the pin! Awesome match, both guys really delivered here. I really like that finish, as Gulak had promised he would make Nese submit, so Nese had a counter lined up for the Gu-Lock, and he got the win with it. Nese jumps the hurdle he couldn’t jump last year and goes to the finals to face Cedric Alexander in the finals.
Rating: ****

JZ Says
Two bangers this week, with both Alexander v Lorcan and Gulak v Nese delivering about what I expected them to. Nese v Alexander should be great, and I’m really liking this year Cruiserweight tournament going into WrestleMania. Why don’t they just call it the Cruiserweight Classic?